GM - Circle Core Head

Vodafone Idea Limited is an Aditya Birla Group and Vodafone Group partnership. It is India’s leading telecom service provider. The Company provides pan India Voice and Data services across 2G, 3G and 4G platform. With the large spectrum portfolio to support the growing demand for data and voice, the company is committed to deliver delightful customer experiences and contribute towards creating a truly ‘Digital India’ by enabling millions of citizens to connect and build a better tomorrow. The Company is developing infrastructure to introduce newer and smarter technologies, making both retail and enterprise customers future ready with innovative offerings, conveniently accessible through an ecosystem of digital channels as well as extensive on-ground presence. The Company is listed on National Stock Exchange (NSE) and Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) in India.

We're proud to be an equal opportunity employer. At VIL, we know that diversity makes us stronger. We are committed to a collaborative, inclusive environment that encourages authenticity and fosters a sense of belonging. We strive for everyone to feel valued, connected and empowered to reach their potential and contribute their best.

VIL's goal is to build and maintain a workforce that is diverse in experience and background but uniform in reflecting our Values of Passion, Boldness, Trust, Speed and Digital. Consequently, our recruiting efforts are directed towards attracting and retaining best and brightest talents. Our endeavour is to be First Choice for prospective employees.

VIL ensures equal employment opportunity without discrimination or harassment based on race, colour, religion, creed, age, sex, sex stereotype, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, citizenship, disability, marital and civil partnership/union status, pregnancy, veteran or military service status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law.

VIL is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversifying its workforce.

Job Purpose

Head the Circle Core Operations with end-to-end accountability for IMS/VoLTE, Packet Core, CS Core, Signaling, LD Core, Enterprise Voice, IPCPE, Cloud infrastructure. 

Drive the Opex /Capex savings by decommissioning legacy assets, and modernizing interconnects from TDM to IP. Upkeep the MTX infrastructure to guarantee best-in-class availability and optimal network performance.

Translates corporate business objectives into carrier-grade network reliability, regulatory compliance, and seamless customer experiences. Delivers massive bottom-line impact by executing automation and AI-driven operations, An impactful technical authority who builds high-performance engineering cultures and drives cross-functional transformation.

Key Responsibilities

Core Network Availability & Reliability

• Own end-to-end operational performance, resilience and business continuity of all Core Network platforms, ensuring industry-leading availability and rapid restoration during critical incidents.
• Govern major incident management, disaster recovery readiness, executive escalations, RCA governance and permanent corrective actions.
• Identify technology risks and drive proactive mitigation with Planning, Projects, Transport, Cloud and OEM teams.
• Maintain and Upkeep the MTX infrastructure to guarantee best-in-class availability

Customer Experience & Service Assurance

• Own Circle customer experience across Voice, Data, SMS, Enterprise and Roaming services by driving KPI governance, service assurance and complaint reduction.
• Core KPI dashboard reviews and drive sustained KPI improvements to deliver quality customer satisfaction.

Technology Strategy, Capacity & Modernisation

• Define Circle Core technology roadmap and capacity strategy in coordination with planning team
• Do operational readiness for new services including VoNR, Cloud-native evolution and AI-assisted operations in coordination with COG and SNOC.
• Govern successful deployment, modernization, lifecycle management and operational acceptance of all Core Network infrastructure.

Operational Governance & Regulatory Compliance

• Govern change management, software upgrades, inventory, audits, LI/LBS compliance, security, business continuity and MTX/Data Centre governance.
• Ensure full compliance with regulatory, security and corporate governance requirements.

Financial & Operational Excellence

• Own Circle Core OPEX targets through infrastructure optimisation, legacy network rationalisation, licence optimisation, capacity utilisation, hardware reuse and process automation.
• Drive productivity improvements and operational efficiency through digital transformation and data-driven decision making.

Leadership & Organization Development

• Lead, mentor and inspire Core Operations teams, building a high-performance culture focused on accountability, innovation and customer centricity.
• Drive succession planning, capability development, talent acquisition, performance management, employee engagement and cross-functional collaboration.

• Represent the Circle Core function in leadership forums and influence strategic decisions across Technology and Business.

Technical/ Functional Competencies

• End-to-end Core Network Architecture (IMS, VoLTE, VoNR, Packet Core, CS Core, Signalling, LD Core , IPCPE, Enterprise Voice)

• SIP, Diameter, IMS Call Flows, SBC, TAS, CSCF, CFX, iNUM

• Multi-vendor Core Platforms (Nokia, Ericsson, Mavenir, Oracle, Cisco)

• Cloud Infrastructure (VNF/CNF), Virtualisation, Kubernetes/OpenShift, Linux and IP/MPLS

• Capacity Planning, Performance Engineering, High Availability, Disaster Recovery

• AI-enabled Operations, Automation Strategy, Observability and Analytics

• Incident, Problem & Change Management

• Regulatory Compliance (LI/RA/LBS), Audit & Risk Management

• Financial Planning, OPEX Optimisation and Technology Governance

Behavioural & Leadership Competencies

Strategic Leadership

• Customer Centricity

• Business & Financial Acumen

• Executive Decision Making

• Change & Transformation Leadership

• Cross-functional Influence

• Stakeholder & Vendor Management

• Innovation & Digital Mindset

• Coaching & Talent Development

• Executive Communication

• Ownership & Accountability

• Resilience & Crisis Leadership

Qualifications & Experience

Minimum Education Qualification

B.E./B.Tech.

Experience

• 15+ years in Telecom Core Networks with extensive leadership experience across IMS, Packet Core, CS Core and Cloud platforms.

• Proven experience leading Circle/Regional Core Operations, technology transformation, customer experience improvement, OPEX optimisation and large multi-functional engineering teams.

• Demonstrated success in managing mission-critical telecom infrastructure, cross-functional stakeholder engagement and executive-level decision making

Vodafone Idea Limited (formerly Idea Cellular Limited)
An Aditya Birla Group & Vodafone partnership